Canal Walk ribbon-cutting June 28

   NEW HOPE — Access to New Hope got a bit easier with the completion of the borough’s Cultural Canal Walk.
   The new walkway connects the borough parking lot, located behind Union Square on West Bridge Street, to the New Hope-Ivyland Railroad.
   Visitors to New Hope can access the 140 parking spaces included in the borough parking lot via Route 202 South to Hardy Bush Way or through the Union Square on West Bridge Street.
   In the lot, they can park their vehicles in a safe and eco-friendly parking lot and walk along the historic Delaware Canal to the town’s historic central business district.
   The borough’s Community Revitalization Committee has planned a ribbon-cutting ceremony for June 28 at 5 p.m. at the entrance to the Canal Walk in the borough parking lot.
   A walk along the canal will end at the New Hope-Ivyland train station where light refreshments will be served.
   This is a project that has been anticipated for a long time,” noted Connie Gering, chairwoman of the Community Revitalization Committee. “We are looking forward to celebrating the opening of the Canal Walk officially and we invite the public to join us in the celebration,” she added.
   The project was funded through a grant of $517,612 from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
   The new asphalt walkway is 6 feet wide and extends more than 1,000 feet along the west side of the Delaware Canal to the historic New Hope-Ivyland train station.
   The walkway includes landscaping, ground-level pathway lighting and a retaining wall and ramps with lighting located under the hand-rails. A split-rail fence was installed along the walk.
   The Urban Research and Development Corporation, of Bethlehem, prepared the Master Plan for the development of the Canal Walk. It was designed by Gilmore & Associates, Inc. Construction was completed by the Marino Corporation, of Skippack, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
   ”The Canal Walk is envisioned as a series of interconnecting trails and loop trails with the towpath as part of the main loop trail. It is designed to provide safe, convenient and attractive pedestrian network and will help to strengthen visual and physical ties between the Delaware Canal and the downtown shopping and historic sites,” said John Burke, New Hope Borough manager.